An IATA airport code , also known as an IATA location identifier , IATA station code , or simply a location identifier , is a three-letter geocode designating many airports and metropolitan areas around the world, defined by the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The characters prominently displayed on baggage tags attached at airport check-in desks are an example of a way these codes are used.
39-484: Bowman Field ( IATA : LOU , ICAO : KLOU , FAA LID : LOU ) is a public airport five miles (8.0 km) southeast of downtown Louisville , in Jefferson County, Kentucky . The airport covers 426 acres (172 ha) and has two runways . The FAA calls it a reliever airport for nearby Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport . Established in 1919, Bowman Field is Kentucky's first commercial airport and
78-416: A course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft . The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a structured accredited syllabus with a flight instructor at a flight school or as private lessons with no syllabus with a flight instructor as long as all experience requirements for
117-425: A driveway and paved parking area. Today Bowman Field is home to hundreds of privately owned aircraft as well as several commercial operations, including Aero Club of Louisville, Inc. , and Louisville Executive Aviation . Several flight schools including Louisville Aviation, Kentucky Flight Training Center, Flight Club 502, and Cardinal Wings. operate there as well. The airport is home to multiple flight clubs. In
156-550: A new airport is built, replacing the old one, leaving the city's new "major" airport (or the only remaining airport) code to no longer correspond with the city's name. The original airport in Nashville, Tennessee, was built in 1936 as part of the Works Progress Administration and called Berry Field with the designation, BNA. A new facility known as Nashville International Airport was built in 1987 but still uses BNA. This
195-499: Is GSN and its IATA code is SPN, and some coincide with IATA codes of non-U.S. airports. Canada's unusual codes—which bear little to no similarity with any conventional abbreviation to the city's name—such as YUL in Montréal , and YYZ in Toronto , originated from the two-letter codes used to identify weather reporting stations in the 1930s. The letters preceding the two-letter code follow
234-600: Is available. However, many railway administrations have their own list of codes for their stations, such as the list of Amtrak station codes . Airport codes arose out of the convenience that the practice brought pilots for location identification in the 1930s. Initially, pilots in the United States used the two-letter code from the National Weather Service (NWS) for identifying cities. This system became unmanageable for cities and towns without an NWS identifier, and
273-569: Is determined by the aircraft's Hobbs meter or Tach timer , therefore the student is only charged while the aircraft engine is running. Flight instructors can also be scheduled with or without an aircraft for pilot proficiency and recurring training. The oldest flight training school still in existence is the Royal Air Force 's (RAF's) Central Flying School formed in May 1912 at Upavon , United Kingdom . The oldest civil flight school still active in
312-518: Is different from the name in English, yet the airport code represents only the English name. Examples include: Due to scarcity of codes, some airports are given codes with letters not found in their names: The use of 'X' as a filler letter is a practice to create three-letter identifiers when more straightforward options were unavailable: Some airports in the United States retained their NWS ( National Weather Service ) codes and simply appended an X at
351-650: Is governed by IATA Resolution 763, and it is administered by the IATA's headquarters in Montreal , Canada. The codes are published semi-annually in the IATA Airline Coding Directory. IATA provides codes for airport handling entities, and for certain railway stations. Alphabetical lists of airports sorted by IATA code are available. A list of railway station codes , shared in agreements between airlines and rail lines such as Amtrak , SNCF , and Deutsche Bahn ,
390-513: Is in conjunction to rules aimed to avoid confusion that seem to apply in the United States, which state that "the first and second letters or second and third letters of an identifier may not be duplicated with less than 200 nautical miles separation." Thus, Washington, D.C. area's three airports all have radically different codes: IAD for Washington–Dulles , DCA for Washington–Reagan (District of Columbia Airport), and BWI for Baltimore (Baltimore–Washington International, formerly BAL). Since HOU
429-532: Is not followed outside the United States: In addition, since three letter codes starting with Q are widely used in radio communication, cities whose name begins with "Q" also had to find alternate codes, as in the case of: IATA codes should not be confused with the FAA identifiers of U.S. airports. Most FAA identifiers agree with the corresponding IATA codes, but some do not, such as Saipan , whose FAA identifier
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#1732875626248468-541: Is the oldest continually operating commercial airfield in North America . It was founded by Abram H. Bowman , who was drawn to aviation by the interest generated during World War I . Bowman found an outlet for his enthusiasm after meeting and forming a brief partnership with Louisvillian Robert H. Gast, a pilot and World War I veteran of the Royal Flying Corps . Bowman leased a parcel of land east of Louisville from
507-598: Is unusual and contributes to the ambience of the Bowman Field Historic District. The buildings of the Bowman Field Historic District are related not only by proximity and historical function, but by their Art Deco / Art Moderne styling and use of masonry materials such as brick, stone and concrete. The dominant landmark of Bowman Field is its terminal, known as the Administration Building, styled in aerodynamic Streamline Moderne , and designed by
546-416: Is used for William P. Hobby Airport , the new Houston–Intercontinental became IAH. The code BKK was originally assigned to Bangkok–Don Mueang and was later transferred to Suvarnabhumi Airport , while the former adopted DMK. The code ISK was originally assigned to Gandhinagar Airport (Nashik's old airport) and later on transferred to Ozar Airport (Nashik's current airport). Shanghai–Hongqiao retained
585-455: The Art Deco terminal building to watch airplanes depart and land as a form of inexpensive entertainment. During the 1930s Eastern Air Lines and Trans World Airlines (TWA) carried passengers and mail in and out of Bowman Field. However, it could not be expanded due to its proximity to downtown. In 1947, the airlines moved to Standiford Field . During World War II , Bowman Field was one of
624-561: The Canadian transcontinental railroads were built, each station was assigned its own two-letter Morse code : When the Canadian government established airports, it used the existing railway codes for them as well. If the airport had a weather station, authorities added a "Y" to the front of the code, meaning "Yes" to indicate it had a weather station or some other letter to indicate it did not. When international codes were created in cooperation with
663-523: The U.S. Government in 1919 to operate the airfield, which opened in 1921. The first business ventures began with the aerial photography business in 1921, and the 465th Pursuit Squadron (Reserve) began operations at Bowman Field in 1922. Charles Lindbergh landed the Spirit of St. Louis at the airport in 1927, viewed by 10,000 spectators. During the Great Depression , Louisvillians would often come to
702-448: The U.S. For example, several airports in Alaska have scheduled commercial service, such as Stebbins and Nanwalek , which use FAA codes instead of ICAO codes. Thus, neither system completely includes all airports with scheduled service. Some airports are identified in colloquial speech by their IATA code. Examples include LAX and JFK . Flight training Flight training is
741-481: The United States, because "Y" was seldom used in the United States, Canada simply used the weather station codes for its airports, changing the "Y" to a "Z" if it conflicted with an airport code already in use. The result is that most major Canadian airport codes start with "Y" followed by two letters in the city's name (for example, YOW for O tta w a , YWG for W innipe g , YYC for C algar y , or YVR for V ancouve r ), whereas other Canadian airports append
780-440: The airport itself instead of the city it serves, while another code is reserved which refers to the city itself which can be used to search for flights to any of its airports. For instance: Or using a code for the city in one of the major airports and then assigning another code to another airport: When different cities with the same name each have an airport, they need to be assigned different codes. Examples include: Sometimes,
819-418: The airport's former name, such as Orlando International Airport 's MCO (for Mc C o y Air Force Base), or Chicago's O'Hare International Airport , which is coded ORD for its original name: Or char d Field. In rare cases, the code comes from the airport's unofficial name, such as Kahului Airport 's OGG (for local aviation pioneer Jimmy H ogg ). In large metropolitan areas, airport codes are often named after
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#1732875626248858-770: The base for Pussy Galore 's Flying Circus; principal photography of hangars, aircraft, etc., were done there in fall of 1963. In 1988, three adjacent buildings at the airport were added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Bowman Field Historic District . They are the airport Administration Building (1929; 1936–37), the Curtiss Flying Service Hangar (1929), and the Army Air Corps Hangar (1931–32). Since many urban airports are located in industrial areas, this verdant setting
897-491: The code SHA, while the newer Shanghai–Pudong adopted PVG. The opposite was true for Berlin : the airport Berlin–Tegel used the code TXL, while its smaller counterpart Berlin–Schönefeld used SXF; the Berlin Brandenburg Airport has the airport code BER, which is also part of its branding. The airports of Hamburg (HAM) and Hannover (HAJ) are less than 100 nautical miles (190 km) apart and therefore share
936-406: The desired pilot certificate/license are met. Typically flight training consists of a combination of two parts: Although there are various types of aircraft, many of the principles of piloting them have common techniques, especially those aircraft which are heavier-than-air types. Flight schools commonly rent aircraft to students and licensed pilots at an hourly rate. Typically, the hourly rate
975-919: The end. Examples include: A lot of minor airfields without scheduled passenger traffic have ICAO codes but not IATA codes, since the four letter codes allow more number of codes, and IATA codes are mainly used for passenger services such as tickets, and ICAO codes by pilots. In the US, such airfields use FAA codes instead of ICAO. There are airports with scheduled service for which there are ICAO codes but not IATA codes, such as Nkhotakota Airport/Tangole Airport in Malawi or Chōfu Airport in Tokyo, Japan. There are also several minor airports in Russia (e.g., Omsukchan Airport ) which lack IATA codes and instead use internal Russian codes for booking. Flights to these airports cannot be booked through
1014-469: The firm of Wischmeyer and Arrasmith . As built in 1929, it was a fairly modest two-story structure with one-story wings, housing administrative and communications offices, weather station , and restaurant. During 1936 and 1937, it nearly tripled in size. This was accomplished by demolishing the east wing and retaining the west and central sections as west wings of the new building. The Administration Building faces an elliptical landscaped island surrounded by
1053-557: The first three letters of the city in which it is located, for instance: The code may also be a combination of the letters in its name, such as: Sometimes the airport code reflects pronunciation, rather than spelling, namely: For many reasons, some airport codes do not fit the normal scheme described above. Some airports, for example, cross several municipalities or regions, and therefore, use codes derived from some of their letters, resulting in: Other airports—particularly those serving cities with multiple airports—have codes derived from
1092-474: The following format: Most large airports in Canada have codes that begin with the letter "Y", although not all "Y" codes are Canadian (for example, YUM for Yuma, Arizona , and YNT for Yantai , China), and not all Canadian airports start with the letter "Y" (for example, ZBF for Bathurst, New Brunswick ). Many Canadian airports have a code that starts with W, X or Z, but none of these are major airports. When
1131-593: The form of " YYZ ", a song by the rock band Rush , which utilizes the Morse code signal as a musical motif. Some airports have started using their IATA codes as brand names , such as Calgary International Airport (YYC) and Vancouver International Airport (YVR). Numerous New Zealand airports use codes that contain the letter Z, to distinguish them from similar airport names in other countries. Examples include HLZ for Hamilton , ZQN for Queenstown , and WSZ for Westport . Predominantly, airport codes are named after
1170-482: The international air booking systems or have international luggage transferred there, and thus, they are booked instead through the airline or a domestic booking system. Several heliports in Greenland have 3-letter codes used internally which might be IATA codes for airports in faraway countries. There are several airports with scheduled service that have not been assigned ICAO codes that do have IATA codes, especially in
1209-612: The name of the airport itself, for instance: This is also true with some cities with a single airport (even if there is more than one airport in the metropolitan area of said city), such as BDL for Hartford, Connecticut 's B ra dl ey International Airport or Baltimore's BWI, for B altimore/ W ashington I nternational Airport ; however, the latter also serves Washington, D.C. , alongside Dulles International Airport (IAD, for I nternational A irport D ulles) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA, for D istrict of C olumbia A irport). The code also sometimes comes from
Bowman Field (Kentucky) - Misplaced Pages Continue
1248-488: The nation's most important training bases and the nation's busiest airport. The facility became known as "Air Base City" when a bomber squadron moved in and more than 1,600 recruits underwent basic training in a three-month period. The United States Army Air Forces ' school for flight surgeons , medical technicians, and flight nurses also called Bowman Field home. Bowman Field was used in the James Bond film Goldfinger as
1287-416: The one they are located in: Other airport codes are of obscure origin, and each has its own peculiarities: In Asia, codes that do not correspond with their city's names include Niigata 's KIJ , Nanchang 's KHN and Pyongyang 's FNJ . EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg , which serves three countries, has three airport codes: BSL, MLH, EAP. Some cities have a name in their respective language which
1326-501: The same first and middle letters, indicating that this rule might be followed only in Germany. Many cities retain historical names in their airport codes, even after having undergone an official name/spelling/transliteration change: Some airport codes are based on previous names associated with a present airport, often with a military heritage. These include: Some airports are named for an administrative division or nearby city, rather than
1365-497: The station code of Malton, Mississauga , where it is located). YUL is used for Montréal–Trudeau (UL was the ID code for the beacon in the city of Kirkland , now the location of Montréal–Trudeau). While these codes make it difficult for the public to associate them with a particular Canadian city, some codes have become popular in usage despite their cryptic nature, particularly at the largest airports. Toronto's code has entered pop culture in
1404-504: The two-letter code of the radio beacons that were the closest to the actual airport, such as YQX in Gander or YXS in Prince George . Four of the ten provincial capital airports in Canada have ended up with codes beginning with YY, including: Canada's largest airport is YYZ for Toronto Pearson (as YTZ was already allocated to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport , the airport was given
1443-529: The use of two letters allowed only a few hundred combinations; a three-letter system of airport codes was implemented. This system allowed for 17,576 permutations, assuming all letters can be used in conjunction with each other. Since the U.S. Navy reserved "N" codes, and to prevent confusion with Federal Communications Commission broadcast call signs , which begin with "W" or "K", the airports of certain U.S. cities whose name begins with one of these letters had to adopt "irregular" airport codes: This practice
1482-702: The world is based in Germany at the Wasserkuppe . It was founded as "Mertens Fliegerschule", and is currently named "Fliegerschule Wasserkuppe". Pilots must first gain their Private Pilot Licence (PPL). They can then progress to a Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL), and finally an Airline Transport Pilot Licence (ATPL). Some countries have a Light Aircraft Pilot Licence (LAPL), but this cannot be used internationally. Separate licences are required for different aircraft categories , for example helicopters and aeroplanes . A type rating , also known as an endorsement,
1521-577: The year-long period ending June 20, 2022, the airport averaged 268 aircraft operations per day: 47% local general aviation , 45% transient general aviation 7% air taxi and <1% military. 235 aircraft are based at this airport: 195 single-engine, 29 multi-engine, 6 jet, and 5 helicopter . Bowman Field is operated by the Louisville Regional Airport Authority , which also operates Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. IATA airport code The assignment of these codes
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